The Forever Queen (The Lost Kingdom-1066) [Paperback]

Originally published under the title "A Hollow Crown" this is the story of Queen Emma of England. Emma who? properly most reader will ask themselves as pre-Norman English rulers and their consorts are not very well known.
So who is this Queen Emma:
Emma was the daughter of Richard I Duke of Normandy and sister of Duke Richard II. In 1002 she became King Aethelred's second but first Christian wife. This marriage created the dynastic link between England and Normandy which, in the end led to the Norman invasion of England in 1066. She had two sons by Aethelred: Alfred the younger son was murdered in 1036 while on a visit to his mother in England, and Edward ("the Confessor") was king of England from 1042 to 1066. Her second marriage, to Cnut, the King of Denmark who claimed the throne of England, was politically advantageous to both parties:
it prevented the Norman court from intervening in England on behalf of Alfred and Edward, and it protected Emma's sons from murder by Cnut. Harthacnut, Emma and Cnut's son, was king of Denmark and of England (1040-42). Following Cnut's death in 1035, Emma supported Harthacnut against his half-brother Harold "Harefoot". In 1037 she was forced into exile by Harold, only to return with Harold's death in 1040. Emma seems to have become estranged from her son Edward and in the year following his accession to the throne: He confiscated her lands and property. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle suggest that Emma's crime was to have kept her wealth from Edward, but it is also believed that Emma supported Magnus of Norway's claim to the English crown. Emma died in 1052.

The book covers Emma's life from her arrival in England till the accession of Edward the Confessor. The rest of her life the interested reader will have to read about in the author's previous book "Haraold, the King". This is not the most fortunate solutions as I would have preferred to read about the life of Queen Emma in one go.

Helen Hollick sheds light into this "dark age" of English history. Step by step she develops the character of this Saxon Queen whose life was a huge struggle - on a personal and political level. It seems that was influx - Christianity has not fully conquered the life of the English. Her husband's first wife was not joined with the king in a Christian sense. Nevertheless their off-springs had a claim to the crown. She herself was the king's Christian wife and crowned queen. Her crowning became of up-most importance to herself and the country as the kings died and had doubtful claims to their crowns she remained the only undisputed legitimacy source of legitimacy. Emma grows stronger and stronger through the years, a female force in a male world: strong, but still very much dependent on the males.

As with the life of Emma the book grows stronger as one gets on. The first 100 pages I have to admit I found a hard struggle and I was nearly giving up on the whole book. But I am glad I did not. Step by step it becomes more interesting and gripping. The end is a bit odd. While the book sometimes explores details in epic length, the end is rather sudden and as said before not satisfying as it does not end with Emma's death.

All in all a good book, but with certain flaws, but still 4 stars.

One of the most satisfying reads I've had in months. Go. Get. This. Book...if you like well-told historical fiction.. If you want at last to fall into the arms of a writer who knows how to lure you into a tale and create women who aren't victims again.

And don't be put off by the period...yes, it isn't those head-chopping Tudors or the silk and satined Georgians but if you know little about early British history you come out of this book with a wider knowledge...and quite a take on Canute, the one who held the sea back.

Emma starts out in a forced marriage with nothing but her wits and pride. We see her go through rape, murder, butchering armies...and play a game of double-cross to keep her throne through two marriages, exile and the sort of children who were spawned by the devil let alone a love match ( at least one of her marriages was happy, anyway.)

Hollick is the kind of writer who knows her craft is to entertain us and many don't. Emma is not weak, not even nice sometimes, but is an engaging and captivating character that you root for.

I only give 5 stars for novels of sheer genius - but don't underestimate this is a real 4 star read and for once, worth every cent/penny/euro.

What a find!

This is a pretty good example of writing in what may be a rather unfairly despised genre. The author has constructed quite a picture of Queen Emma - and one that smartly weaves in facts and detail. Of course attributing motives and feelings to people a thousand years ago is risky enough. But there's enough written source material (though of course it's very partial) to attempt the task here. And Helen Hollick does it rather well, though as she herself emphasises, it's only a novel.

As the wife of two kings and the mother of two more - plus a daughter who wed the Holy Roman Emperor Henri III - the subject is interesting enough. She had her 'biography' written, too, which marks her out somewhat. Many serious historians mistakenly assume that if something is written down - particularly if it's contemporary - it's likely to be true. That seems grossly naive given the politics of history. Helen Hollick is mindful of this trap. Her Emma of Normandy emerges as a well drawn character and even a half credible one.

This is about the Anglo/Danish/Norman gangster style power struggles among the 11th century ruling class. If you're interested in history from this time and place, and you can accept the limitations of historical fiction - this might be a good choice. The author generates a colourful and atmospheric story. It's well researched, well planned, and well written. Emma remains the only woman buried in Winchester cathedral. And while her bones have been mixed up with several other corpses from this period, this tale gives her spirit a tasty airing.